John Lineker’s ONE debut set for ONE Championship 101

John Lineker’s ONE Championship debut is set, and it’s a tough one right off the bat.

Lineker, who was released by the UFC earlier this year, will take on Muin Gafurov at ONE Championship 101: Dawn of Valor set for Oct. 25 at Istora Senayan in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Lineker was surprisingly cut by the UFC after pulling out of his scheduled co-main event bout vs. Rob Font at UFC on ESPN+ 12 in June. UFC president Dana White vented his frustration on Lineker’s failed attempts to make weight in the past, as well as pulling out of bouts on numerous occasions. He was subsequently released from the UFC and signed with ONE.

Lineker (31-9) is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Cory Sandhagen at UFC on ESPN+ 8 in April. “Hands of Stone” will make his debut in ONE when he takes on Tajikistan’s Gafurov.

Gafurov (16-2) is on a five-fight winning streak and is coming off a first-round knockout over Leandro Issa. An aggressive fighter who has a plethora of finishes on his resume, Gafurov will be facing arguably the toughest test in his career against the battle tested Lineker.

The ONE Championship 101 card will be headlined by a welterweight title fight between Sweden’s Zebaztian Kadestam and Kyrgyzstan’s Kiamrian Abbasov. Kadestam is coming off a win over Georgiy Kichigin at ONE Championship 89 in March for his first successful title defense and is currently on a three-fight win streak.

He takes on Abbasov, who spoiled UFC veteran Yushin Okami’s ONE debut, taking him out in the second round in May.